Is there anyone interested in a career in Finance or in Business in general? Is there anyone who currently works in Finance?

I’m calling out everyone who would want to meet up one day in NYC to talk about our experiences. We will talk about why we became interested in Finance, how each of our recruitment processes were like, and much more. This is an opportunity to learn more and to mentor others!

Please comment below if you would be interested! Once I get a good idea of how many people are interested in attending, I could set up a date and location!

Is there anyone interested in a career in Finance or in Business in general? Is there anyone who currently works in Finance?

I’m calling out everyone who would want to meet up one day in NYC to talk about our experiences. We will talk about why we became interested in Finance, how each of our recruitment processes were like, and much more. This is an opportunity to learn more and to mentor others!

Please comment below if you would be interested! Once I get a good idea of how many people are interested in attending, I could set up a date and location!

Is there anyone interested in a career in Finance or in Business in general? Is there anyone who currently works in Finance?

I’m calling out everyone who would want to meet up one day in NYC to talk about our experiences. We will talk about why we became interested in Finance, how each of our recruitment processes were like, and much more. This is an opportunity to learn more and to mentor others!

Please comment below if you would be interested! Once I get a good idea of how many people are interested in attending, I could set up a date and location!

Is there anyone interested in a career in Finance or in Business in general? Is there anyone who currently works in Finance?

I’m calling out everyone who would want to meet up one day in NYC to talk about our experiences. We will talk about why we became interested in Finance, how each of our recruitment processes were like, and much more. This is an opportunity to learn more and to mentor others!

Please comment below if you would be interested! Once I get a good idea of how many people are interested in attending, I could set up a date and location!

Is there anyone interested in a career in Finance or in Business in general? Is there anyone who currently works in Finance?

I’m calling out everyone who would want to meet up one day in NYC to talk about our experiences. We will talk about why we became interested in Finance, how each of our recruitment processes were like, and much more. This is an opportunity to learn more and to mentor others!

Please comment below if you would be interested! Once I get a good idea of how many people are interested in attending, I could set up a date and location!

I’ve been recently reading Never Eat Alone, by Keith Ferrazzi. In Chapter 3, he mentioned the Blue Flame: something that everyone has, but takes time to realize. Yes, it sounds like something magical from Harry Potter. It definitely is magical, although it’s not anything regarding magical powers. The Blue Flame is magical in terms of its effects when you realize what it is.

The Blue Flame is an intersection of your strengths and your interests. In other words, the Blue Flame represents a passion and a purpose. When you enjoy doing something and you are good at doing it, the journey will be much more enjoyable and successful. However, if your weaknesses align with what you enjoy doing, that journey will be harder and you will face many more obstacles. That is why Keith Ferrazzi stresses others to think about not only their goals, but also what they excel at.

Next time you have time, make a list of your strengths and make another list of your interests. Then, look at both lists to find intersections. This will help you find your own Blue Flame! To get you started, comment one of your strengths and one of your interests below! If you found your Blue Flame, feel free to share your story on how you did so!

I was looking at photos from last semester and I was reminded of how extremely busy I was during finals. It was my first semester in the business school and I was still adjusting to the different structure of the courses compared to the other courses I’ve taken in the past. All four of my finals were back to back and I was also looking finding the perfect apartment to live in for the next semester. On top of that, I got a terrible injury on my finger, which hindered my studies. I remember feeling so overwhelmed, but I persevered because I knew that, despite the given obstacles, I was capable. I believed in myself and I knew that I couldn’t give up without trying my best. And that is exactly what I did and I successfully finished my semester strong, found a place to live, and left college with a healing finger.

When I remember how hard I worked during that time, I gain confidence in my ability to do anything I am determined to do. It reminds me to never give into the obstacles that are thrown at me in my life, because I know there will definitely be a lot of them.

When was a time where you personally struggled, but endured the hardships and didn’t give up? Share your stories in the comment section below! As you recall, I hope you are reminded of your strength during that time!

Vision: A bSmart woman understands that leadership begins with a clear vision for herself and others.

As women, we are often discouraged from having specific career and lifestyle goals (by society and subsequently by our peers and ourselves)

Create a mission statement for yourself, and don’t shy away from dreaming big, recognizing your full potential, and being specific.

Some example statements to get you started:
- I’m at my best when…
- My goal in life is to pursue…
- My strengths are...
- I will find opportunities to use my natural talents and gifts by…
- I am inspired by…
- The 3 most important values in my life are…
- As an ideal friend/ family member/ co-worker/ citizen of the earth I want to…

My mission is to pursue editing, writing, and marketing by building a strong network, dedicating my time and energy to every job and opportunity, and working my way up so that I can work for a successful magazine or editorial company. I’m at my best when I practice self care, stay organized, am doing something I enjoy, and have a supportive social circle. I would like to pursue entrepreneurship, help others (especially in the mental health realm), and be supportive, compassionate, and generous to friends, family, and others in my environment.

In today’s world, it’s so easy to stop thinking and follow the millions of voices of our society, media, and even of our families and friends. We disregard our thoughts and feelings, pushing them to the back of our consciousness.

Recently, I’ve been trying to make self-reflection an everyday part of my life, and I’ve realized a lot about myself that I would’ve have if I didn’t stop and think about it. We are so influenced by other people that we unconsciously allow them to control our lives, telling us what we can do and what we can’t do. We can take control of our lives by incorporating mindfulness in our lives.

Therefore, I encourage you to take this time to reflect on your thoughts and feelings. Simplify them and make them clear. Even though it’s hard, try to disregard outside forces that tend to disrupt your personal thinking! It could be about anything: your future career, how you feel about where you are in life right now, or even your next vacation destination. Share in the comments below and feel free to tag as many other bSmart members as you’d like!

In today’s world, it’s so easy to stop thinking and follow the millions of voices of our society, media, and even of our families and friends. We disregard our thoughts and feelings, pushing them to the back of our consciousness.

Recently, I’ve been trying to make self-reflection an everyday part of my life, and I’ve realized a lot about myself that I would’ve have if I didn’t stop and think about it. We are so influenced by other people that we unconsciously allow them to control our lives, telling us what we can do and what we can’t do. We can take control of our lives by incorporating mindfulness in our lives.

Therefore, I encourage you to take this time to reflect on your thoughts and feelings. Simplify them and make them clear. Even though it’s hard, try to disregard outside forces that tend to disrupt your personal thinking! It could be about anything: your future career, how you feel about where you are in life right now, or even your next vacation destination. Share in the comments below and feel free to tag as many other bSmart members as you’d like!

A few days ago, I went to a networking event hosted by my university. I was intrigued by one of the conversations I’ve had that left me thinking on the subway back to Penn Station. We were conversing about how we both don’t trust others in collaborative efforts and how we both are significantly more comfortable working independent, even though that means twice, maybe thrice as much work.

Collaboration is a huge part of life. Many working fields require collaboration. In reality, we won’t have time to finish all the parts to a project or look over everyone’s parts like we did in high school and in college. There are shorter deadlines and even more work than we ever imagined on our plate. We won’t have as much free time and even if we do, that free time should be used much more productively. Therefore, I want to emphasize the importance of collaboration. It means that we must open our ears and be open-minded to different ideas. It means that must be able to trust others if we want others to trust us. We need to take steps outside our comfort zone in order to grow.

I’m not exactly sure why we felt the way we did towards group effort, but there’s probably a thousand reasons why. But for me, I thought maybe it’s because I may be more opinionated than I thought I was. Without realizing, maybe I feel that there’s only one right way, my way, to do a certain thing. Maybe it’s because I’m a hard worker and I don’t trust that others would work hard and produce the best results that they could. However, I easily forget that so many people also work hard and want to produce the best results, as well.

At this point, you may be asking why I am naming all these reasons why I am not as collaborative as I would like to be. I wanted to make a point that thinking about why you do a certain thing can really help you learn more about yourself, your weaknesses, and ways you can gradually evolve your weaknesses into strengths. Currently, I am working towards becoming more of a collaborative individual.

What are your thoughts on this subject? Do you also find yourself sighing when you hear the word “group work” or “collaboration”? Or do you find yourself excited to work with others? What are some of the reasons why? Share your responses in the comments section below! Also, if you have them, please share your tips on how to learn to be more comfortable in a collaborative setting.

Before the spring semester of my sophomore year had come to an end, I made a list of things that I really wanted to accomplish during the upcoming summer. One of the things I’ve written was to actually get some inspirational reading done. As someone who doesn’t really read as a leisure activity, this was definitely a challenge for me. I’ve never had to patience to get myself to sit down for an hour and read with focus. I got so used to briskly skimming textbook chapters and scholarly articles for my classes that I felt like I forgot how to actually enjoy reading.
I realized that the only way to achieve this goal I’ve made was to pick a book that I felt would be of importance to my life and personal objectives. I’ve always wanted to improve my interpersonal skills for as long as I can remember. This particular objective became more essential as I decided to go to business school as I realized that networking is a significant part of it. That’s why I’ve chosen the legendary book written by Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends & Influence People.
I personally know a lot of people who have a similar goal to mine, so I wanted to share some of the things I’ve learned from reading this book. Yes, yes, I meant by ACTUALLY reading the book.

Here are 3 lessons that I will harbor forever:

1) “Never criticize, complain, or condemn.”
Dale Carnegie always emphasized that malignant criticizing never leads to anything good. Most people criticize because they want people to change their ways and beliefs, but criticizing doesn’t make anyone want to change. Instead, it makes the other person feel bad about themselves, adopting hatred. Instead of pointing the negative things that you find in a person, appreciate the positive things and tell that person.

2) “Become genuinely interested in other people.”
I’ve always been so focused on impressing others when I first meet someone because I think that would make them like me. However, I’ve learned that there’s no point in doing that. I’ve realized that a more effective way to get people to like you is focus less on yourself, but on the person you’re actually talking to. Talk about things that they would find interest in or talk about things you have in common.

3) “Remember people’s names.”
I don’t know if it’s just me, but whenever I meet someone, I tend to forget their name because I’m so concentrated on what I’m saying and how I’m conveyed to them. This is a fault I’ve always realized, but never gave too much importance to. Thus, I’ve gone on my merry way without trying to fix this personal problem. However, I’ve learned that one’s name is directly connected to their importance. Forgetting people’s names make them feel like they’re not important enough for you to remember their name. Therefore, always make an effort to remember names!

I didn’t want to share too much, because I feel like the stories communicated through the book hold massive impact and really open your eyes and mind. You should definitely take a look at this book if you found interest in what I’ve shared! I highly recommend it! Feel free to tag others or share your thoughts below! And finally, I hope you found importance to these lessons whether they are new to you or maybe you already learned these lessons, but needed a reminder.